A Breath of Fresh Air
by MashPotatoeSquishBanana
Summary: It's the 1930's, and restless 17 year old Rose feels smothered by her controlling mother. She is even forced to choose a bodyguard! But here's the interesting part: the bodyguard she picks is blond, blue eyed, and goes by the name Jack Dawson. Jack is a carefree, interesting man who is everything Rose wants in life. The only problem? Ruth has found Rose a rich fiancee.


**Hey, this is my first time doing a Titanic fic, so please no haters! I watched the movie ages ago and hated it, but I recently rewatched it and now I'm obsessed with it! I must have watched it about five times in the last week. So, here goes.**

**Chapter 1:**

**Pick and Choose**

"Rose," Caledon Hockley said coldly. "You are to choose one of the men standing in front of you to be your bodyguard. No questions asked."

Rose Dewitt- Bukater turned her head away from her controlling husband and directed her fierce glare at the floor.

_Bastard, _she thought.

She couldn't bring herself to meet the eyes of any of the poor, bedraggled men standing before her in a line.

"I refuse," she said quietly.

"Pardon me?" Cal turned to stare at her with a bemused expression.

"I said that I refuse," Rose raised her voice a notch.

All that she was aware of was suddenly Cal's steely grip on her shoulders, him shaking her back and forth.

He pushed her against the wall and slapped her hard. Her head jerked sideways, and she fell to her knees at his feet.

"You will obey me, Rose," Cal said, unfazed by his actions. "Stop grovelling on the ground and behave like a lady!" he ordered.

Rose stood, trembling. "Now, please, Rose. Choose a body guard. You know I'm only doing this for your safety. Because I love you." Cal's voice softened. Rose choked in contempt. She could only imagine what the eight witnesses to Cal's beating could be thinking by now.

Cal turned to glare at the line of men, who were all staring in shock at the violent scene that had just taken place between the rich man and his wife.

"If any of you men utter a single word of what you have witnessed today," Cal said quietly, calmly, still in control, "I will have you discretely hanged, you family stripped of all possessions, titles and fortunes, and your house and property burnt to ashes. Do you understand me?"

Rose just wanted to go hide under a rock and die. She was married to this man; this man who had just laid out what horrible things he would do to innocent people if a word was uttered of his mistreatment of his wife?

Rose didn't look up as she lifted a shaky hand and pointed randomly to a man.

Then she turned on her heel and ran.

* * *

Rose threw herself down on her couch in her sitting room and screamed into one of the duck down pillows. She hated her life. She hated Cal. She hated her mother's scheme for money. She wanted to die.

She sat up and threw the pillow across the room, where it hit the mirror. A porcelain jewellery box that Cal had given her on their first wedding anniversary fell to the floor and shattered. Rose laughed manically. Or it could have been a hysteric scream. Or maybe she was sobbing. She wasn't sure.

"I hate Caledon Hockley!" she screamed and kicked a chair. It skittered across the marble floor and banged noisily against the matching table. "I hate you, I hate everything!"

She was just about to punch the mirror when someone cleared their throat, and in the mirror she saw a handsome young man standing awkwardly behind her. He had a ratty backpack slung over one shoulder, and his clothes were old and tattered. Frankly, he looked as out of place amongst all of Rose's finery as an African American would look amongst a bunch of Albinos.

Rose dropped her hand and spun around, suddenly embarrassed and a little self conscious. How much of her temper tantrum had he seen? By the way he was staring at her, more than enough. She knew that she wasn't looking her best; her curly red hair was falling out of its fancy up do, and vibrant red curls were bouncing all over the place. She was aware that she had been crying and her mascara was probably in streaks all down her face.

Rose crossed her arms in an attempt to appear at least a little dignified before him.

"And just _what _are you doing in my _private _rooms, Mister?" she demanded.

"I'm the guy you picked to be your bodyguard, Miss Dewitt- Bukater," the man said. Actually, as Rose studied him, she realised that he actually wasn't much older than her. Twenty one at the most. And he was handsome— not playboy handsome. Not 'hot' as most of the girls in Rose's finishing school refer to boys as these days.

He was the classical type of handsome, with a square jaw and baby blue eyes. His hair was blond, and seemed to naturally fall to the side. His skin was tanned, but Rose noticed a few freckles across his nose.

If this man was supposed to be her bodyguard… Rose didn't see how she could keep from getting close to him. She already liked him. But if Cal ever found out…

"Oh, uh," Rose said, realising that she'd been silent a bit longer than necessary. "What's your name, then?" she found herself asking.

The man stepped forward and dropped his bag on the floor. He held out a hand for her to take, and she did. His grip was warm, and firm.

"I'm Jack Dawson," the man said.

Rose couldn't help but think how well the name suited him. "Well, Mr Dawson, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to get— acquainted in coming weeks, but please excuse me, I'm going to have a bath and then get ready for bed. I assume Cal has found you accommodation for your stay here?"

As Rose went about her room picking up her mess, she heard Jack say, "I hope it's okay with you, Miss Dewitt- Bukater, but I'm going to be staying in here. I'll sleep on the couch tonight, of course, but in coming days, Cal will have a cot installed."

Rose didn't stop what she was doing, but her heart sped up ten fold. A handsome boy around her age staying in her rooms. She wasn't sure whether she should be excited or scared.

_Only time will tell what I should feel, _she thought as she made her way to her bathing suite. _And maybe this new 'bodyguard' program isn't such a bad idea._

She glanced back once at Jack and found him watching her. She quickly diverted her gaze. _This is going to be quite interesting, actually_.

**What did you think? Should I continue? Please review, or follow so that I know whether people are reading. Because if people aren't reading and reviewing, I won't update, okay?**


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